Automatic coupling for railway-cars.



No. 745.794. PATBNTED DEC. 1, 1903. W. B. GROOK.

AUTOMATIC COUPLING FOR RAILWAY CARS.

APPLICATION FILED FEB. 7. 1903.

N0 MODEL. 2 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

mtnesses InYenZo r.

PATENTED DEC. 1, 1903.

W. E. UROOK.

AUTOMATIC COUPLING FOR RAILWAY CARS.

APPLICATION FILED FEB. 7, 1903.

N0 MODEL.-

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

Witmmses Int anti) r. fmw WgWMflM No. 745,794. Patented December 1, 1903.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFIcE.

TVILLIAM ERNEST OROOK, OF SURRY HILLS, NEAR SYDNEY, NEW SOUTH WALES, AUSTRALIA.

AUTOMATIC COUPLING FOR RAILWAY-CARS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 745,794, dated December 1, 1903.

Application filed February '7, 1903, Serial No. 142,412. (No model.)

To (6 whom it may concern: der the hook is a foot of such length and Be it known that 1, WILLIAM ERNEST breadth as to rest on the link 0, as in Fig. 1, CROOK, a subject of the King of Great Britain, to keep the parts when uncoupled in proper residing at Surry Hills, near Sydney, in the positions. Attached to the foot is an arm 70, 5 State of New South Wales, in the Commonwhich passes through the link and in the unwealth of Australia, have invented certain coupled position projects forward, as shown new and useful Improvements in Automatic in Fig. 1. The purpose of this arm, the fore Couplings for Railway-Oars, of which the folend of which, Z, is broadened, as shown, is

lowing is a specification. to facilitate the act of coupling, as explained :0 My invention relates to improvements in below, and usually the arm is made of springautomat-ic couplings for railway-cars. steel. Pivoted, as at m, to the upper side of Thisinvent-ion relates to acouplingfor raileach hook is a series of pivotally connected' way-cars and like rolling-stock, and is of that links, as n o 19, provided with atooth or teeth class in which the couplings lock automatq and connected by chain or the like, r, to a I5 ically when the cars are pushed together and lever-arm s, projecting from a shaft t, at-

in which the unlocking is performed by the tached to the car and movable, as by lever aid of an employee, who is not required to go u, located at each side of the car end. Pivbetween the cars, but works from either side oted, as at o, to the brackets f is a tumbler of the track. or block 10, which is normally kept by a 2o Theinvention provides for similar mechauspring, as 00, with its force end pressing downisms at each end of each car, having two books ward, so that in the uncoupled position the and two links coming into engagement and fore end presses upon the hook rear, keepboth hooks having to be disengaged from the ing the hook up, while in the coupled posilinks (which can be done simultaneously) in tion it presses again the hook-tail within the 25 order to uncouple. recess 7 above mentioned, keeping the hook Referring to the accompanying drawings, securely down. which show the adjacent ends of two cars iVhen uncoupling is desired, it is done by fitted with the invention, Figure 1 is a side operating the levers u of two adjacent car elevation, partly in vertical middle section, ends, whereby arms 8 are swung round and 0 of the device in uncoupled position. Fig. 2 a pull put upon the parts 19 0 n m, (see Fig. is a plan of parts in Fig.1, some being omit- 3,) the effect being first to press down the ted to give a clearer view of the remainder. rear end y of the tumbler 20, said end pro- Fig. 3 is a side elevation, partly in middle jecting to engage atooth at g, (or being othvertical section, showing the coupled posierwise adapted to engage with partp.) This 35 tion, and Fig. 4: is a plan view of the parts raises the tumbler front, unlocking the hook in Fig. 3, in each case some parts being omith, which then in each case swings round on ted to allow other parts to be more clearly its pivot, bracketsfalso rising on their pivunderstood. ots until the uncoupled position of hook is Referring now to the drawings, each end of reached.

0 each car has a suitable draw-bar, giving such As will be obvi0us,when two of the links 0 playas may be desired,and has pivoted theremeet one another one will naturally slide to,asatb,thebevel-endedlinkc,whichprojects above the other, owing to the beveled ends horizontally forward with a slight amount of and the vertical play aforesaid, and equally vertical play to allow it to take such an inobviouslyeaoh link will (bystrikingthe yield- 5 clination as may be requiredin coupling, the ing part 7a orj, as the case may be, of the 0platter being illustrated in Fig. 3. The rear posite car mechanism) automatically swing of each link is extended to form a lug (1, prothe hook of said opposite car through the said viding a pivot, as at e, for a bracketf at each link into the coupled position, the tumbler 10 side, and between such brackets, at their fore meanwhile being tilted up at its fore end, as mo 50 ends, is pivoted, as atg, the shanks of a hook will be understood from Fig. 1, until it is h, having at its tail a slot or recess *5. Unthrown by the spring a: into the position seen in Fig. 3. As soon as the foot 7' is pushed back, so ceasing to support the fore ends of the pivoted brackets f, the latter swing downwardly till they rest as in Fig. 3,whereby the security of the coupling is increased.

There are various minor features of the construction illustrated which may be departed from while still preserving some essential features of the invention.

Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said invention and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I claim is 1. In an automatic railway-car coupling, a

pair of links arranged to slide along each other a pivoted hook for each link each having a tail slot or recess, a foot on each hook to be struck by the opposite link, and an arm projecting from each foot, as and for the purposes described.

2. In an automatic railway-car coupling a link, a hook to engage the same a spring-actuated pivoted tumbler to engage the hook to hold it either up or down substantially as and for the purposes described.

3. In an automatic railway-car coupling pivoted brackets having pivoted thereto a hook a tumbler adapted to bear upon the said hook and a link to be engaged by the hook to couple the cars, substantially as described.

4. In an automatic railway-car coupling a pivoted beveled link projecting forward horizontally with a slight amount of vertical play, and having a lug a bracket pivoted thereto and a hook pivoted .to the bracket and arranged to engage the opposite link, substantially as described.

5. In combination in an automatic carcoupling device a pair of links, brackets pivoted to the links, hooks pivoted to the brackets to engage the links, foot portions on the hooks resting on the links and arms extending from the foot portion under the links adapted to contact with the opposite link to operate the device.

6. In combination in an automatic. carcoupling device, a pair of links, brackets pivoted thereon, hooks pivoted to the brackets, said hooks having each a recessed tail portion, a tumbler bearing on the tailpiece of the hook and link connections for releasing said tumbler to nncouple the car and for operating the hook.

7. In combination in an automatic carcoupling device, a pair of links arranged to move along each other, hooks secured above said links and engaging the same to hold them coupled, said hooks being operated by the links.

8. In combination in an automatic carcoupling device, a pair of links, hooks secured above said links and engaging the same to hold them coupled and means for disengaging the hooks from the links to uncouple.

Signed at Sydney this 28th day of November, 1902.

WILLIAM ERNEST CROOK.

Witnesses:

H. G. ZIMMION, J12, J. J. LANGDON. 

